Examples of this can be seen all over the technology world as well as the real world. Many richer people purchase “high-end” Sony or Apple products, with very little regard for the fact that these products have artificially inflated prices based on branding and inferior-design proprietary bundleware certified to provide features such as DNLA-compliance (wow, a uPnP media server on my laptop!?) or “home media centre” (wow, an alternative graphical shell for accessing music!?).

The richer and more affluent people in this world pay more for everyday common items than the less well-off and will try to pay as little as possible for rare/uncommon items (such as one-off works of art). The willingness to pay higher prices for common items isn’t due to any inherent quality benefit in the product itself, but perceived value in the form of services and support provided for the product.

I tend to ask true enthusiasts about quality and durability of products prior to purchasing anything (if i’m not the enthusiast, that is). It’s amazing what one finds out this way…